Warranty hassles

[boat-baby]

40HP 2006-2007 mercury 40HP 4 stroke.

THE GOOD
-idles in neutral good when cold
-letting it sit out of water with flush hose attached for 30 mintues and moving in to fwd/rev OK
-LU is good (as per merc service center) and has oil
-unit is under warranty

THE BAD
-Makes a whiring noise in neutral after being put under load....1/2 throttle 1/8th of mile
-noise goes away in gear
-noise goes away after being turned off for sometime but quickly returns after running boat under load again and then putting in neutral.

-Dealer tells me this is normal on the optimax ans verado....this is a regular 40HP unit
and its still under warranty for a few years, they cant see any physical damage....thats not helping me.
-The dealer pretty much deals with large inboards only....they are not outboard savvy.



What is normal? I have only come across one other post on this, the guy ended up selling it:
http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum4/HTML/003121.html

I need help to get this issue settled. Please help!

the boat baby

 

[boat-baby]

Re: Warranty hassles

I did find this thread after I posted.....no definitive answer....one thing sounded close...the clutch:

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=132709&highlight=stroke+noise+neutral

I do not think the sound is normal. I have never heard any other motor make this noise. This include 4 stroke motor cycles, cars, lawn mowers...

 

[CharlieB]

Re: Warranty hassles

You must document the issue by getting service orders written by the dealer, this will drag out and once beyond the warranty period with no paperwork to show this has been an issue.........

Have a long talk with the dealers factory service rep, suggest pulling an oil sample from the LU and sending it in. If the LU is shimmed too tight then once up to operating temp the bearing / gear pre-load it too much causing accelerated wear/noise. Metalic particles would show up at the lab in your oil sample.

 

[boat-baby]

Re: Warranty hassles

Thank you Charlie B


Thats an explanation I have not heard yet, but, it is something I suspected and so makes very good sense to me. I am taking it to another merc service center in hopes that they try and then its the factory reps all the way.

boat baby

 

[boat-baby]

Re: Warranty hassles

I spoke with the dealer. They had the bottom end apart and say that the noise is comming from the top of the engine and they can hear it comming frimt he top end (why did the bottome end come off then? for thoroughness).

I was told that the issue has not surfaced yet and if/when it does then it can be properly diagnosed. No paper work becuase there was nothing to claim to mercury.

Woudl it be a bad thing to wait until winter to get this looked at?

 

[woody66912]

Re: Warranty hassles

this may be a long shot.but a few years back i ran across this whiring nose.and it just happened that howard lomies the field rep stopped in that day and he had recorded this noise. what it turned out to be was.there is a chamber under the power head .that the exhaust will vibrate the metal base gasket.the fix was to drill a hole in the gasket.later on a serivce bullten was sent.have your dealer check on this?and if they haven't called tech service yet ask them to.